Monadnock Paper Mills appeal DES conditions

BENNINGTON — Monadnock Paper Mills, Inc. is appealing the conditions set in the Department of Environmental Services’ final state water quality certificate that was issued in January.

The certificate requires the paper mill to conduct a series of studies of the Contoocook River.

For nearly 100 years the paper mill has owned and operated four hydroelectric power generating stations on the Contoocook River consisting of Powder Mill Dam, Monadnock Dam, Pierce Dam and Paper Mill Dam.

The energy created by the stations is almost entirely consumed by the manufacturing plant.

In its February appeal to DES, the paper mill argues that while a certificate may include necessary conditions to assure compliance of the facility’s operations with water quality criteria, “there is no statutory authority to impose obligations to conduct an unlimited series of studies in the river for the purpose of establishing “Protected Instream Flows” with which the facility would then be required to comply.”The appeal said that extensive studies

have not demonstrated that the paper mill is causing or contributing to any violations of water quality.

A pre-hearing conference for the appeal is set for Sept 10 at the DES office in Concord.